WASHINGTON (TNND) — Elon Musk has put forward an ambitious plan to provide American citizens with rebate checks as the Department of Government Efficiency works to reduce waste at the federal level.
In a post on X, previously known as Twitter, Musk shared on Tuesday that he would “check with the president” about the possibility of issuing “DOGE dividend” checks. This proposal, which suggests returning 20% of the savings created by DOGE back to taxpayers, was initially introduced by James Fishback, the CEO of Azoria Investment Firm. Fishback’s idea rapidly gained popularity after going viral online.
“Our goal was to make DOGE tangible for millions of Americans. They are entitled to a share of the savings DOGE will generate under President Trump’s guidance,” Fishback stated.
Early reports indicate that the potential stimulus funded by DOGE could return as much as $400 billion to taxpayers. As noted by Politico, this plan could provide around $5,000 to each of the 78 million households that pay federal income tax.
During an interview on the FOX News Channel’s Hannity on Tuesday night, President Donald Trump expressed optimism that Musk and DOGE could identify $1 trillion in government waste, fraud, and abuse.
DOGE has claimed to have saved the government $55 billion to date.
The proposal has attracted considerable attention on social media, with numerous users showing support for the idea of direct payments to taxpayers. One TikTok video has gone viral, amassing over 5 million views since its posting on Sunday, with users speculating that taxpayers might receive as much as $8,000.
However, as of Wednesday, there has been no formal announcement regarding DOGE’s issuance of stimulus checks as part of any government cost-saving initiatives.
